MURFREESBORO – A decade after posting the lowest academic scores in major college football and then writing the NCAA's greatest comeback story of the same sort, is it time for MTSU to alter its zero tolerance approach to recruiting academically at-risk student-athletes?

MTSU football stopped signing NCAA non-qualifiers as late as 2005 under then-coach Andy McCollum as part of an emergency new academic approach following a dead-last ranking in the first-ever Academic Progress Rate (APR) — which measures student-athletes' eligibility and retention rates — for the 2003-04 year.

After NCAA-imposed scholarship reductions in 2006, MTSU has since raised its APR score to among the highest in college football and posted the largest turnaround in the academic policy's history while staying far away from non-qualifiers – student-athletes failing to meet the NCAA's minimum academic requirements. But some competitors have managed to make passing grades in the APR while continuing to sign a few academic non-qualifiers, landing talented recruits of whom MTSU has washed its hands.

"We have not signed (NCAA academic non-qualifiers) as a practice, but it's not a policy," MTSU athletic director Chris Massaro said.

Is it time for MTSU to loosen that practice?

"Well, I would never ever say never ever," MTSU President Sidney McPhee said. "The general thinking is that we stay away from (signing non-qualifiers). Generally, I always leave an option for exceptional cases, and it would have to be exceptional and rare."

Just as McPhee leaves the door slightly open, there does not appear to be clear-cut factions within MTSU of those strictly in favor or opposed to signing non-qualifiers, but rather a sliding scale from those that believe it might work in moderation to those fearful of falling into past temptations.

But most agree that times and circumstances have changed.

Others do it

MTSU now plays at a higher level in Conference USA, where at least one-third of football schools permit the signing of academic non-qualifiers, according to The Daily News Journal's survey of member institutions. Two of the league's top teams – Marshall and North Texas – regularly sign NCAA non-qualifiers.

C-USA and the Sun Belt Conference, MTSU's current and previous leagues, do not have a policy against signing NCAA non-qualifiers. Both leave that to the discretion of member schools. The Big Ten, Atlantic Coast and Mid-American conferences also let their schools decide.

The Southeastern Conference and Pac-12 – arguably the top two football leagues – both permit moderation. Per current league rule, the SEC allows each school to sign four non-qualifiers in men's sports and four in women's sports per year, with a maximum of two in football per signing class and no more than one in any other sport.

However, the University of Tennessee has not signed a non-qualifier at least during the past two head coaching stints of Derek Dooley and Butch Jones, according to the Vols media relations office.

The Pac-12 permits the signing of two non-qualifiers in men's sports and two in women's sports per school per year, with a maximum of one in a single sport each signing class.

If the current proposal for autonomy by the five major conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC) is passed by the NCAA Division I Board of Directors in August, the group could adopt a joint policy on signing non-qualifiers.

"I absolutely know others are (signing NCAA non-qualifiers) because there are players we are not recruiting that our competition is," current MTSU coach Rick Stockstill said. "When I first got here, I knew the academic issues. But after all that, I have never been told that I can or can't bring one in."

McPhee said he would hold the final decision if MTSU considers signing a non-qualifier, but others' use of the practice would have no bearing on his judgment.

"Not at all. We have our own values and beliefs at MTSU that make sense of how we operate," McPhee said. "This might be an extreme example, but if someone jumped off a bridge, would we jump off that bridge? It would have to make sense for MTSU, but I don't care who else is doing it."

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MTSU coach Rick Stockstill has helped turn around the football program’s academic profile. Has that earned the right to take a risk with a non-qualifier?<252>(Photo: HELEN COMER/DNJ)

Risk vs. reward

Per NCAA rule, non-qualifiers cannot compete, practice or receive financial aid during their first academic year. They simply spend their first year acclimating academically while working out on their own apart from organized team activities. But they do have access to athletic department tutors and academic advisers immediately without being on scholarship.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) protects the identity of NCAA non-qualifiers unless their consent is given. On a roster, they are often lumped in with those taking a traditional redshirt year for other reasons.

But it's well known around the MTSU football program that some of its on-field success stories in the FBS era (Division I-A) have come from non-qualifiers, including numerous all-conference and NFL players over the past 15 years.

Wide receiver Kerry Wright, the Blue Raiders' all-time touchdown receptions leader, and defensive lineman Thomas Johnson, a former five-year NFL veteran, were both academic non-qualifiers at MTSU. Both spoke openly about their success stories of graduating in only four years in a 2004 DNJ story.

“Well, I would never ever say never ever.”

MTSU President Sidney McPhee on signing non-qualifiers

Some of McCollum's best players were non-qualifiers, and Stockstill inherited and further developed some standouts from that group.

"There were some success stories (among non-qualifiers) that ended up being good players with degrees," said Massaro, who served as AD for McCollum's final season and hired Stockstill in December 2005. "But at that time, we couldn't afford to do that APR-wise, to take those kinds of risks."

But many other McCollum non-qualifier signees failed to graduate after being placed on scholarship, which contributed to the aforementioned APR troubles. Stockstill said he has never signed and enrolled an NCAA non-qualifier at MTSU, but he has brought in NCAA qualifiers that did not meet the university's admission standards.

Before enrolling and ultimately going on scholarship, every student-athlete must pass through two academic checkpoints: Meet NCAA requirements and university admission standards.

Stockstill and the MTSU athletic department have successfully appealed to the university to enroll signees that met NCAA requirements but narrowly missed the school's admission standards.

Enrolling a limited number of "special admits" is a common practice in Division I athletics, but the process can take months and even stretch into the summer just before the student-athlete arrives on campus. Stockstill said all of his appeals for "special admits" at MTSU have eventually been successful, but the narrow margins and long process indicate it would be nearly impossible to push through an NCAA non-qualifier.

But Stockstill said the risk is the same for other players as non-qualifiers, who do not count toward the APR until placed on scholarship in their second year. For example, if a player with a 2.5 grade-point average leaves the team due to homesickness or displeasure over playing time or dismissal, the team's APR penalty is the same as an NCAA non-qualifier failing academically after being placed on scholarship. Even a player with a 4.0 GPA that transfers to a non-Division I school counts the same in the APR as a non-qualifier that does not remain eligible.

MTSU has weathered all those scenarios under Stockstill and still maintained a team APR score in the top 20 percent nationally (ranked 26th among 126 FBS teams).

But there are intangible risks too. Discord between MTSU faculty and the athletic department a decade ago has virtually disappeared during the current era of high academic marks of the football and basketball teams.

MTSU faculty athletics representative Terry Whiteside said signing NCAA non-qualifiers to the football team, even under the direction of Stockstill, could test that relationship.

"Right now, the faculty is on board with athletics because you don't hear about a lack of academic equality (between student-athletes and other students) at MTSU like you do other places," Whiteside said. "Coach Stock has done this the right way. But even with that in mind, I think the faculty would be very much against it."

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MTSU owns the largest academic turnaround in the NCAA’s history of using the APR.(Photo: John A. Gillis/DNJ File)

Would it work?

After their APR failure a decade ago, MTSU poured money, time and attention into its student-athlete enhancement center, more than doubling its staff of advisers and tutors.

The Blue Raiders' ensuing APR turnaround drew praise from the NCAA, which invited MTSU staff members to speak at APR-focused seminars in following years. The athletic department has found a formula that works, and even Whiteside, who is generally opposed to signing non-qualifiers, thinks they would have a good chance to succeed if signed.

"We have a proven system here that works and the leadership to do it, and we would probably get them through. Coach Stock graduates virtually everybody," Whiteside said. "But I think (non-qualifiers) take up so much of the academic resources that they take away from the others. I think Coach Stock could do it and the door isn't closed, but I don't think it's in the university's best interests. I just haven't seen a need to do it. We are already super-competitive without doing it."

MTSU's success on and off the field during the Stockstill era can provide arguments on both sides of the debate.

On one hand, the Blue Raiders have earned bowl eligibility five times in eight seasons, often beating opponents that signed the non-qualifiers that MTSU would not accept.

"We have no reason to stoop to that," Whiteside said. "We don't need to fix anything."

But on the other hand, who better to do it the right way than the administration that pulled the football program out of the mess in the first place?

"I have no doubt in my mind (non-qualifiers) would succeed here and graduate," Stockstill said. "We have proven that we do not let anyone slide, whether they have a 2.5 or a 4.0 (GPA). We have a proven track record at this point."

McPhee said he would only consider a non-qualifier if there was a "compelling argument," but he also believes the resources are in place for a willing non-qualifier to graduate at MTSU.

"Absolutely. And we have a moral obligation to provide those resources," McPhee said. "That goes for the general student body across the board, not just athletics."

Stockstill said he has no timetable in trying to sign a non-qualifier. But with some C-USA competition already doing it in head-to-head recruiting battles, such an attempt could come sooner than later.

"We know what we're competing with because we see it all the time in recruiting," Stockstill said. "(Signing non-qualifiers) isn't something we have done since I've been here. But I do know that every player we bring to our campus will succeed in the classroom if they want to. Our track record proves that."

Contact Adam Sparks at 615-278-5174 or sparks@dnj.com. Follow him on Twitter @AdamSparks.

Signing Non-Qualifiers

The DNJ's survey of university and conference policies/practices of signing NCAA academic non-qualifiers

FBS (I-A) Conferences

Conference

NCAA academic non-qualifier policy/status

ACC

No policy; at schools' discretion

American

Do not admit non-qualifiers

Big 12

Do not admit non-qualifiers

Big Ten

No policy; at schools' discretion

Conference USA

No policy; at schools' discretion

Mid-American

No policy; at schools' discretion

Mountain West

If high school athlete unqualified, permanently ineligible for MWC schools

Pac-12

2 non-qualifiers allowed in men's sports and 2 in women's sports per school per year (maximum 1 in a single sport)

SEC

4 non-qualifiers allowed in men's sports and 4 in women's sports per school per year (maximum of 2 in football; no more than 1 in any other sport per year)

Sun Belt

No policy; at schools' discretion

Conference USA

(Includes 2014-15 football members)

School

NCAA academic non-qualifier policy/status

FAU

Do not admit non-qualifiers.

FIU

Do not admit non-qualifiers.

La. Tech

Coaches can request signing non-qualifiers; university considers on individual basis.

Marshall

Admits about 3-4 football non-qualifiers per year.

MTSU

No policy, but no non-qualifiers admitted since as late as 2005.

North Texas

Coaches can request non-qualifiers; current AD never admitted more than three football players in a year.

Old Dominion

Do not admit or recruit non-qualifiers.

Rice

Do not consider signing non-qualifiers because university standards exceed NCAA requirements.

Southern Miss

Allow signing non-qualifiers, but rarely do.

UAB

Do not admit non-qualifiers.

UTEP

No policy; Have admitted a few non-qualifiers in other sports, but none in football last 4 years.

UTSA

No non-qualifiers admitted in at least 7 years; none in football, which began in 2010.

Academic redshirt: Per a new stricter NCAA policy, student-athletes who enter a Division I school on or after Aug. 1, 2016 will not be eligible to play if their grade-point average is below 2.3 when they graduate from high school. Also, a student-athlete must complete 10 of their 16 core courses before their senior year. If they do not meet these requirements, the student-athlete will take a mandatory "academic redshirt" upon beginning their college career.

APR (Academic Progress Rate): NCAA's team-based metric that measures eligibility and retention of each student-athlete per term. Perfect score is 1,000. Currently teams must earn a 930 four-year average APR or a 940 average over the most recent two years to participate in NCAA championships. In 2015-16 and beyond, teams must earn a four-year APR of 930 to compete in championships.

APR for MTSU football: Most recent APR score was 979 for single year (2012-13). Multi-year average is 972, ranked 26th among 126 current FBS schools and tied with Notre Dame, Miami, Ohio State and Indiana. MTSU football scored a national-low 812 in the first APR in 2003-04.

Core courses: Set of primary classes required for college enrollment and used to calculate GPA to meet NCAA requirements and university admission standards. Every high school in the country has a list of its recognized NCAA-qualifying core courses.

NCAA requirements: For high school graduates, it is calculated by a sliding scale of two factors: GPA (in core courses) and either ACT/SAT score. For example, a 3.0 GPA requires only a 13 score on the ACT, a 2.5 GPA requires a 17 on ACT, a 2.0 GPA requires 21.5 on the ACT, and so on.

NCAA non-qualifier: A student-athlete that does not meet NCAA minimum requirements (but in some cases they can still meet university admission standards). An NCAA non-qualifier cannot compete, practice or receive financial aid during their first academic year of college. They do not count on a team's APR score until on scholarship in the second year.

Special admits: A common practice in Division I athletics, it means accepting a student-athlete that meets NCAA academic requirements but narrowly misses university admission standards. Must pass through a university appeals process.

Student-Athlete Enhancement Center: On-campus facility tasked with providing advisers, tutors, planning and academic resources to all student-athletes (both scholarship and non-scholarship). MTSU more than doubled its SAEC staff after failing APR scores in 2003-04 and gained accolades from NCAA for academic turnaround.

Transcript: Record of courses taken and grades during student-athlete's academic career. MTSU has a strict policy that it will not permit a prospective recruit to take an official visit on campus until their transcript has been reviewed by the athletic compliance department.

MTSU admission standards: Unrelated to NCAA requirements, each university has its own admission standards for all students. MTSU's automatic minimum standard is a 21 on the ACT. Students can appeal for numerous reasons.

NCAA Qualifying Sliding Scale

NCAA requirements for incoming freshmen

Core GPA…ACT*

3.550…9.25

3.525…9.50

3.500…9.75

3.475…10.00

3.450…10.25

3.425…10.25

3.400…10.50

3.375…10.50

3.350…10.75

3.325…11.00

3.300…11.00

3.275…11.25

3.250…11.50

3.225…11.50

3.200…11.75

3.175…11.75

3.150…12.00

3.125…12.25

3.100…12.25

3.075…12.50

3.050…12.50

3.025…12.75

3.000…13.00

2.975…13.00

2.950…13.25

2.925…13.25

2.900…13.50

2.875…13.75

2.850…14.00

2.825…14.00

2.800…14.25

2.775…14.50

2.750…14.75

2.725…14.75

2.700…15.00

2.675…15.25

2.650…15.50

2.625…15.75

2.600…16.00

2.575…16.25

2.550…16.50

2.525…16.75

2.500…17.00

2.475…17.25

2.450…17.50

2.425…17.50

2.400…17.75

2.375…18.00

2.350…18.25

2.325…18.50

2.300…18.75

2.275…19.00

2.250…19.25

2.225…19.50

2.200…19.75

2.175…20.00

2.150…20.00

2.125…20.25

2.100…20.50

2.075…20.75

2.050…21.00

2.025…21.25

2.000…21.50

* ACT score calculated from average of highest score in each of four categories on test.

Note: In typical cases, student-athletes must also meet university admission standards.